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Video: Gregory: Obama’s speech ‘seized’ the moment

Transcript of: Gregory: Obama’s speech ‘seized’ the moment

GEIST:Could be
the end of the road
.
NBC
's
Chuck Todd
,
thank you very much
.
David Gregory
is moderator of "
Meet The Press
."
David
, good morning.

DAVID GREGORY reporting:Hey, Willie.

GEIST:President Obama
had a difficult task the other night in
Tucson
of comforting the people of that city, and indeed of the country. But also he tried to calm the
political debate
. How did he do on both counts,
David
?

GREGORY:Well, I think by all accounts he did very well. You hear compliments for him on both the left and the right, everyone across the
political spectrum
. And
Chuck
alluded to it. I mean, he did two things, which is to give voice to what people around the country have been feeling. This is something that affects people and families whether you knew the victims or not very deeply. And second, I think he took the country to a place that it didn't even know that it needed to go, talking about words that heal, not words that wound. Talking about being as big as this moment requires in our
political life
, in our
political discourse
around the country. So I think it was a moment that all agreed that he seized and kind of charts a path for where
Washington
and frankly the rest of the country can go.

GEIST:David
, I think we all agree civility's a worthy goal, but as
Chuck
just said in his piece it is back to business. The
Republican House
takes up the repeal of
President Obama
's signature
health care reform
law. Why should this time be any different? Why will the conversation change?

GREGORY:Look, I -- you know, cynicism is warranted, this is
Washington
after all. I think
Washington
can do a great job elevating moments like this to become a national moment of reflection, but
Washington
is also really capable of wasting these moments as well. If there's some hope, as it were, in the middle of a time here and now leading up to the
State of the Union address
where this spirit can be tapped into again, as
Chuck
alluded to, the president will do it again in the
State of the Union
and talk that way. We are about to have another
health care
debate. It doesn't have to be the way it was. There are even moves by Senator
Tom Udall
of
Colorado
during the
State of the Union
to have both parties sit together instead of sitting apart. I mean, these are small gestures, but ultimately it's about how the debate moves forward. We're going to have big debates about the role of government in our lives, government spending,
health care
and the like. It's a question of do people really want to make that turn?

GEIST:And of course,
David
,
Sarah Palin
has been right in the middle of this conversation, even linked by some of her critics to the shooting because of some of her rhetoric. There was, of course, no evidence for that at all. Now getting some criticism for that
Facebook
statement she put out on the same day of the memorial. What is the long-term impact,
David
, on her political brand?

GREGORY:You know, it's so difficult to gauge that because we don't know where she's headed politically other than being a really big political star, really. You know, everybody talks in terms of a potential run for the presidency for her. We just don't know if that's where she's headed. We just know at the moment she has huge political impact. I think the criticism of
Sarah Palin
would be that she made it more about her than it needed to be. That she was speaking to perhaps a narrow band of supporters who wanted to settle scores here after being linked to all of this in a way that was not supported by any evidence. That she didn't take an opportunity to go bigger as the president did and talk about this political moment that we're in independent of what happened in
Tucson
in terms of how we talk to one another. So I think that's a criticism that will carry with her. And, look, she has carried for a long time this ability -- or this question about whether she can step outside that narrow band of supporters and reach a wider audience.

GEIST:And,
David
, I imagine these will be among the topics of conversation on Sunday's "
Meet the Press
."

GREGORY:No question about it,
Willie
. We have a special roundtable dedicated to these questions about our
political discourse
moving forward.
Martin Luther King
's birthday.
Al Sharpton
will join our roundtable,
Tim Shriver
as well. But we'll begin with the program, with the debate about
Washington
, the debate over gun control. Senators
Schumer
and
Coburn
join me for that discussion.

TUCSON, Ariz. — President Barack Obama mourned victims of the Tucson shooting spree Wednesday and urged Americans not to let a political debate over the tragedy be used as "one more occasion to turn on one another."

In a speech at a service for those killed in a weekend massacre that left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords gravely wounded, the president appealed for national unity and soul-searching after the shootings. He urged Americans to "expand our moral imaginations" and "sharpen our instincts for empathy" — even with those who are political adversaries.

"I believe we can be better," Obama said to a capacity crowd at the University of Arizona basketball arena — and to countless others watching across America. "Those who died here, those who saved lives here — they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another is entirely up to us."

Six people were killed and 13 wounded in the massacre. Police allege 22-year-old Jared Lee Loughner shot Giffords and many in the line of people waiting to talk with her during a constituent event outside a Safeway store.

Obama referred to the Tucson gunman, although not by name. "None of us can know exactly what triggered this vicious attack," the president said. "None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped these shots from being fired or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man's mind."

The attack sparked a vehement debate over whether the country's heated political discourse had contributed to the shooting.

Using the massacre to address the nation's spiritual state, the president decried the small-minded nature of political debate. "If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate, as it should, let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost," he said in a speech that was frequently interrupted by applause and cheers from the audience.

"Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point scoring and pettiness that drifts away in the next news cycle."

At a time when "we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do," Obama said, the killings should make Americans ask themselves "Have we shown enough kindness and generosity and compassion to people in our lives?"

AFP - Getty Images

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has opened her eyes and signaled he could see, President Barack Obama said.

Sarah Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, was drawn into the national debate after the shootings. Last March, Giffords noted in a TV interview that Palin's political committee had targeted her district — among others — with crosshairs on her website and said "there are consequences to that action."

On Wednesday, Palin posted a video online in which she defended her actions and rebuked the news media and her critics.

'Powerful and uplifting'Newspapers on the left and right of the political spectrum praised the president for his speech.

A New York Times editorial called it "one of his most powerful and uplifting speeches." Mr. Obama said that it must be possible for Americans to question each other’s ideas without questioning their love of country," added the newspaper, known for its liberal opinion page. We hope all of America's leaders, and all Americans, will take that to heart."

Peggy Noonan, who was a speechwriter to Ronald Reagan, described the address as "full spirited." She told MSNBC's 'Morning Joe that Obama said what he needed to say. "In the days since the shooting in Arizona, a lot of people went straight down into the muck and started wrestling there. He didn't go there."

"Gabby opened her eyes," Obama said to a loud cheer from the audience on the University of Arizona campus, adding that the congresswoman "knows we are here." Although the president wasn't in the room at the moment Giffords' eyes opened, he said her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, had given him permission to break the news.

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, three of Giffords' close female friends in Congress, were in the hospital room at that time.

Also on Wednesday, Pima Community College in Tucson has released records of its campus police contacts with Loughner, showing the increasing fear that he stirred in his classmates and teachers.

A thread running through the documents is the difficulty of campus police to find a context in which to intervene: Until they found a violation of the student code of conduct, or a state law, police officers wrote in the reports that they weren't sure what else they could do, even when a fellow student said she thought Loughner had brought a knife to class.

The records show no indication that the college took steps to get Loughner any mental health counseling.

Loughner also seemed not to understand the seriousness of the fears. When police spoke with him, Loughner said his free speech rights were being violated, and seemed to have trouble understanding why he had been called out of class.

Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., authorities stepped-up security around lawmakers in the wake of the shooting.

A hearse carrying the remains of U.S. District Judge John Roll arrives at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church before his funeral on in Tucson, Ariz., Friday, Jan. 14. Roll was killed in the Jan. 8 shooting that left six dead and wounded 13, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
(Morry Gash / AP)
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Mary Kool holds a single red rose outside the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church where the funeral of U.S. District Judge John Roll was to take place.
(Eric Thayer / Reuters)
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A flag recovered from ground zero is raised during funeral service for 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Tucson, on Thursday, Jan. 13. Green was the youngest victim of the shooting rampage. Green was born on Sept. 11, 2001.
(Mamta Popat / EPA)
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Left to right, Roxanna and John Green, mother and father of Christina Taylor Green, and their son Dallas Green, arrive at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church for her funeral in Tucson on Thursday.
(Mamta Popat / Pool via Reuters)
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People dressed as angels line the street leading to the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church where the funeral for Christina Taylor Green was to take place in Tucson on Thursday. Hundreds, dressed in white, lined the streets for more than a quarter mile of the funeral procession.
(Mike Segar / Reuters)
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John Green kisses his son Dallas on the head as the family follows the casket of Christina Taylor Green at her funeral mass in Tucson, on Thursday. At left is Christina's mother Roxanna and at right is Camden Grant, Christina's godmother's son.
(Rick Wilking / Pool via AP)
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Cindy and John McCain listen during the funeral service for shooting victim Christina Taylor Green in Tucson on Thursday.
(Greg Bryan / Pool via Reuters)
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A woman holds the service program from the funeral for 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green outside St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Tucson on Thursday.
(Mike Segar / Reuters)
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President Barack Obama speaks at the University of Arizona's McKale Memorial Center during the memorial service for victims of the shootings in Tucson. Obama told the crowd on Wednesday, Jan. 12, that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords had opened her eyes for the first time since being shot in the head during the attack on Jan. 8. Six people were killed and 13 wounded by the lone gunman.
(Jewel Samad / AFP - Getty Images)
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Ron Barber, 65, district director for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, is visited by Giffords aide Daniel Hernandez in his hospital room on Jan. 9. Hernandez rushed to Gifford's aid after she was shot. Hernandez said that while he held the wounded Giffords, he asked another bystander to put pressure on Barber's wounds. He also asked Barber for his wife's phone number and then shouted it out to someone so that Barber's wife, Nancy, could be informed of the shooting.
(Gabrielle Giffords' Office / Reuters)
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President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama observe a moment of silence with White House staff members on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Jan. 10.
(Jewel Samad / AFP - Getty Images)
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Congressional staff observe a moment of silence to honor victims of the assassination attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords on the steps of the Capitol in Washington.
(Michael Reynolds / EPA)
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Rachel Crabb, 5, holds hands with teachers, parents and other students during a moment of silence for her slain schoolmate, Christina Taylor Green, at Mesa Verde Elementary School on Jan. 9.
(John Moore / Getty Images)
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Candles are lit on Sunday at a makeshift memorial outside University Medical Center in Tuscon, Ariz., for those killed or wounded during the attack on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords .
(John Moore / Getty Images)
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Six balloons representing the six people killed in Saturday's shooting spree, as part of a prayer vigil.Rep. Gabrielle Giffords battled for her life on Sunday after an assailant shot her in the head and killed six others in a rampage that has launched a debate about extreme political rhetoric in America.
(Eric Thayer / Reuters)
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The American flag flies at half-staff on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Jan. 9. In a brief statement Sunday morning, House Speaker John Boehner said flags on the House side of the Capitol in Washington will be flown at half-staff to honor the slain aide, Gabe Zimmerman, of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Thirty-year-old Zimmerman was among six killed Saturday.
(Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP)
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Emergency personnel use a stretcher to move Rep. Gabrielle Giffords after she was shot in the head outside a shopping center in Tucson on Saturday.
(James Palka / AP)
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Ernie Freuler fights back tears as Ray Lilley takes photos of the scene outside the office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords after she was shot in the head by a gunman who opened fire outside a grocery store, Saturday, Jan. 8, in Tucson, Ariz.
(Chris Morrison / AP)
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A law enforcement officer stands outside the home of Jared L. Loughner, identified by federal officials as the suspect arrested in connection with the shooting of U.S Representative Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Ariz., Jan. 8.
(Eric Thayer / Reuters)
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People gather for a candlelight vigil for the victims of the shooting in Arizona at the steps of Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Saturday Jan. 8.
(Jose Luis Magana / AP)
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Vera Rapcsak and others hold signs outside the office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords on Saturday after she was shot while meeting constituents.
(Chris Morrison / AP)
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Emergency personnel attend to a shooting victim outside a shopping center in Tucson, Ariz. on Saturday, Jan. 8, where Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and others were shot as the congresswoman was meeting with constituents. Rep. Giffords, 40, a Democrat, took office in January 2007, emphasizing issues such as immigration reform, embryonic stem-cell research, alternative energy sources and a higher minimum wage. The gunman shot Giffords in the head, seriously wounding her, and killed six other people in a shooting rampage at a public meeting in Tucson on Saturday. Giffords was airlifted to a hospital in Tucson where she underwent surgery. One of the doctors who treated her said he was optimistic about her recovery.
(James Palka / AP)
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A woman places flowers by the office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords on Capitol Hill in Washington on Saturday after she was shot in Tucson by a gunman who opened fire, killing six people, including a U.S. district judge, John M. Roll.
(Nicholas Kamm / AFP - Getty Images)
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In this photo provided by The White House, President Barack Obama talks with Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer about the shooting.
(Pete Souza / AP)
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Emergency personnel at the scene where Giffords and others were shot outside a Safeway grocery store in Tucson on Saturday.
(Matt York / AP)
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